Miller



' (No Model.)

J. D. MILLER.

DRAFT ATTACHMENT POR VEHIGLES. No. 406,755. Patented July 9, 1889.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

JOHN D. MILLER, or WASHINGTON, DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA, ASSIGNOR OFONE-HALF To JOHN A. BAKER, or SAME PLACE.

DRAFT ATTACHMENT FOR VEH|CLE S;..1

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 406,755, dated July 9,1889.

Application filed January 4, 1889. Serial No. 295,461. (No model.)

To all whom it may concern: accommodate the barB, upon which said slideBe it known that I, JOHN DxMILLER, of is also mounted, passes thebalance of the Washington, in" the District of Columbia; way through thesame. have invented certain new and useful lin- Upon the slide D andeach end thereof is provements in Draft Attachments for Vehimounted ahook, the forward one (i' for at- 55 cles; and I do hereby declare thefollowing tachment to the draft-chain which is attached to'be a full,clear, and exact description of to the hames, and the rear one (I forattachthe same, reference being had to the aocomment to the chain whichgoes over the back .panying drawings, forming a part of this of theanimal to support the shafts. In the specification, and to the figuresand letters of ends of these hooks are pivoted gravitating 60 referencemarked thereon. pawls, arranged in such a manner that when Thisinvention relates to that class of vea link of a chain is attached toone of the hicle or draft attachments wherein the strain hooks the pawlwill allow it to enter and then in starting the same is materiallylessened by drop down and retain the same when it is in theinterposition of'a spring located in such position, so that it cannotcome loose from' 65 a manner as that the animal drawing the ve any jarthat may be caused, but at the same hicle will not be subject to thejerk necestime the link can be readily released by sary in starting aload, but by compressing lifting the pawl with the finger. If it be saidspring will ease up the load and start found desirable that the linkshould not be the same gradually, and in which the backreleased from thehook, the pivot of the pawls 7o chain which holds up the shafts will bekept after the chain has been hooked on could be at all times in suchaposition as not to cramp riveted up tight, thus substantially makingthe saddle and gall the back of the animal an eye of it. drawing saidload. It will now be seen that as the draft-hook Referring to theaccompanying drawings, and back-chain hook are arranged upon the Figure1 is a top plan view of a pair of same slide it must necessarily followthat shafts with my invention applied thereto. when the draft is broughtto bear upon the Fig. 2 is a side View of one of the shackles. springthe compression will cause both hooks Fig. 3 is avertical longitudinalsection. Figs. to advance with the animal drawing the load 0 4 and 5 areviews of a modification. and thereby effectually prevent any liabilitySimilar letters of reference in the several to gall its back, as is thecase with shackles figures indicate the same parts. now largely used. Itwill also be seen that Mounted upon each of the shafts A, and the strainin starting--a loaded cart, for inrigidly secured thereto, is a bar B,one end stance--is greatly lessened. As every one 35 of which is bentdown, as b, at right angles to knows, the hardest part in drawing aload-is the rest of the bar. This end is passed in starting, and myinvention is designed to through the shaft and is secured beneath thelessen the strain that comes at that time as same by means of a nut orin any approved far as possible.

manner. The other end of the bar B is passed The operation ofmyinvention is as follows:

40 through an eye I) in a short perpendicular The animal which is todraw the loaded ve- 0 bar 19 and rigidly secured thereto by rivethicleis attached to the same by connecting ing. This bar 1) is also passedthrough the the back-chain to the hook (1 the draft-chain shaft andsecured beneath the same in a to the hook d, and the breeching-chain tothe manner similar to the bent end I) of bar B. hook I). The animal isthen started, the

45 Upon the bar B is mounted a spiral spring draft-chain draws upon hookd, and through C, which takes abearing against the eye b'of the mediumof the slide D compresses the bar I) at one end, and the other end takesits spring 0 against the bar b and also carries bearing in a socket dformed in theslide D. forward the hook (1 to which the back-chain Thissocket passes about half-waythrough is attached. "When the spring ispartially 50 the slide, and a hole 19 justlarge enough to compressed,the load will begin to move and with much less strain than would berequired to start the same load with any other shackle now in use.

In the modifications shown in Figs. at and 5 it will be seen that myinvention can be applied to vehicles where a back-chain is not needed,and it is only necessary to lessen up the strain in starting.Consequently the hook for attachment to the back-chain is dispensed withand the hook (1 only left remaining. It, however, is found necessarythat the hook d should retain an upright position, and this is done by'making'the' bar B square in crosssection and forming the hole 6 to fitthe same.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim as new is- 1. In adraft'at-tachment for vehicles, the combination, with the horizontal barrigidly attached to the 'shaft,of the slide mounted on said bar with thedraft-chain or trace-hook mounted directly thereon, and the springinterposed between said slide and the forward end of the horizontal barthrough which the draft is transmitted to the shaft, substan tially asdescribed.

2. In a draft attachment for vehicles, the combination, with thehorizontal bar rigidly attached to the shaft, of the slide mounted onsaid bar and having the socket in the forward end, the draft-chain ortrace-hook mounted on said slide, and the coil-spring within the socketthrough which the draft is transmitted to the shaft, substantially asdescribed.

3. Ina draft attachment for vehicles, the combination of a slidecarrying hooks for attachment to the draft chain or trace and theback-chain, said hooks having pivotally attached to them pawls forretaining the links of such chains in position, and a spring interposedbetween said slide and the forward end of a horizontal bar upon whichall these parts are mounted, and which bar is rigidly attached to theshafts of a vehicle, substantially as described.

4. In a draft attachment for vehicles, the combination, with a slidecontaining asocket for the accommodation of a spiral spring, and havingupon it hooks for attachment to the draft chain or trace and theback-chain, said hooks having gravit-ating pawls for retaining inposition said chains, a spring interposed bet-ween said slide and theforward end of a horizontal bar, upon which all these parts are mounted,and which bar is rigidly attached to the shafts of a vehicle, of a hookfor attachment to the breeching-chain, said hook mounted upon the reardepending end of said horizontal bar, substantially as described.

JOHN D. MILLER.

Witnesses:

' THOMAS DURANT,

M. P. CALLAN.

